Music

Music lessons are firmly rooted in practical activities and students sing and play music in every lesson. There is a strong emphasis on the quality of their music making, with students honing core musical skills such as feeling pulse and rhythm and developing their inner musical ear and musical reference points. With the wide range of musical ability and prior experience that students bring to the classroom, the work is adapted so that all students are included and also challenged.

Year 7

Year 7 music lessons have a focus on developing students’ sense of pulse and rhythm alongside learning to play xylophones and keyboards. There is a strong emphasis on singing and body percussion activities to further develop students’ musical understanding and they also start to learn to read music notation. Students work in whole class ensembles, small groups, pairs and individually. Students are also introduced to Soundtrap, where they start to learn music production skills and apply the practical skills they have developed on instruments.

Year 8

The Year 8 Music Curriculum continues to develop students’ practical musical skills. They learn about keyboard chords and become confident using them in their performing work in a unit focussed on the 12 Bar Blues. The ukulele is also introduced, reinforcing students’ understanding of chords and enabling them to learn to sing and play together. Later in the year, they explore how music can be used to create mood in a unit on Game Music.

Year 9

Music in Year 9 kicks off with a unit on Samba music, with students performing Brazilian samba music in whole class ensembles and small groups.  Students learn to play complex polyrhythms and improvise confidently. They later go on to study Film Music, exploring how music can enhance and change the understanding of what is happening in a film scene. The year ends with a range of production projects and practical group music making.

At GCSE we approach music with a strong emphasis on performing, both solo and ensemble, listening and composing. Pupils get the opportunity to work alone, in a class setting and in small groups. Pupils study 8 set works in four different areas of music and will answer questions on these as part of their listening exam, which is worth 40% of the GCSE. Pupils perform at regular intervals throughout the 2 year course on their chosen instrument, in preparation for a final solo and ensemble performance which contributes to 30% of the final grade. Pupils also submit two unique compositions, one free and one set brief, making up the final 30% of the GCSE.

The department provides numerous opportunities for students to participate in many different types of performances within school, in the local community and on tour.  Our current music clubs include Year 7 choir, Voice Squad (Year 7-9), Tring Vox (Year 10+), Concert Band (Year 7-9), Guitar Group (Year 7-9), Rock n Pop Group (Year 7-9), Music Technology Club (Year 7-9) and our flagship ensemble Swing Band (Year 10+) who can often be heard performing at events in the wider Tring Community. There are also numerous rock and pop bands who have regular weekly rehearsal slots at break/lunch.

All these ensembles regularly perform at school concerts as well as numerous events across Tring and collaborative projects across Hertfordshire Schools. As well as this, we offer termly Open Mic Nights to give students a chance to perform individually prepared solo or small group pieces. Please head to the Clubs & Extracurricular page of the website to see the full range of music sessions available to students.

In addition to the above, we are also delighted to work with the Drama Department at Tring school on our bi-annual whole school musical production, the most recent being Chicago in January 2026 at the Dembe Theatre.